Business intelligence data presents many challenges to user interface designers trying to find an optimal way for presenting the correct amount of data on limited screen space. By nature, business intelligence data tends to be voluminous not to mention contextual such as to a given user, to a given situation, to a given geography, etc. So many business intelligence tools including reporting tools, such as Crystal Reports by Business Objects, an SAP company provides a flexible platform for creating reports in real time which are accessible to most technology novices including casual business users.
Many reporting tools and other business intelligence applications combine raw data with other data visualization objects such as charts, graphs, etc. Business users want to be able to edit data visualizations dynamically by adding and removing data. However, such users are also very concerned about how the data visualization looks including fitting in the correct type and amount of data in the correct form within given screen limitations. Accordingly, they want to be able to preview how their desired changes will affect a current visualization of the data without actually implementing the change, for instance.
This need is more pronounced on a data visualization that already has data objects (e.g., fields in a report) displayed on an existing canvas. For instance, the current user interface of Crystal Reports requires a lot of manual effort when modifying a report such as by adding a data object into a set area. This effort is commonly referred to as pixel pushing. This experience can be made easier for data visualization authors and increase their productivity simultaneously.